Proverbs 30:1-33
30 The weighty message contained in the words of Aʹgur son of Jaʹkeh, which he spoke to Ithʹi·el, to Ithʹi·el and Uʹcal.
2 I am more ignorant than anyone else,+And I lack the understanding a man should have.
3 I have not learned wisdom,And I do not possess the knowledge of the Most Holy One.
4 Who has ascended to heaven and then descended?+
Who has gathered the wind in the palms of both hands?
Who has wrapped up the waters in his garment?+
Who has established* all the ends of the earth?+
What is his name and the name of his son—if you know?
5 Every saying of God is refined.+
He is a shield to those taking refuge in him.+
6 Add nothing to his words,+Or he will reprove you,And you will be proved a liar.
7 Two things I ask of you.
Do not withhold them from me before I die.
8 Remove untruth and lies far from me.+
Give me neither poverty nor riches.
Just let me consume my portion of food,+
9 So that I do not become satisfied and deny you and say, “Who is Jehovah?”+
Nor let me become poor and steal and dishonor* the name of my God.
10 Do not slander a servant to his master,Or he may curse you and you will be found guilty.+
11 There is a generation that curses its fatherAnd does not bless its mother.+
12 There is a generation that is pure in its own eyes+But has not been cleansed from its filth.*
13 There is a generation whose eyes are so haughtyAnd whose eyes look so arrogantly!+
14 There is a generation whose teeth are swordsAnd whose jaws are slaughtering knives;They devour the lowly ones of the earthAnd the poor from among mankind.+
15 The leeches have two daughters that cry, “Give! Give!”
There are three things that do not get satisfied,Four that never say, “Enough!”
16 —The Grave*+ and a barren womb,A land that is deprived of water,And fire that never says, “Enough!”
17 The eye that mocks a father and despises obedience to a mother+—The ravens of the valley* will peck it out,And the young eagles will eat it up.+
18 There are three things that are beyond my comprehension,*And four that I do not understand:
19 The way of an eagle in the heavens,The way of a serpent on a rock,The way of a ship in the open sea,And the way of a man with a young woman.
20 This is the way of an adulterous woman:
She eats, she wipes her mouth;Then she says, “I have done nothing wrong.”+
21 There are three things that make the earth shudderAnd four things it cannot endure:
22 When a slave rules as king,+When a fool is glutted with food,
23 When a hated* woman is taken as a wife,And when a servant girl takes the place of* her mistress.+
24 Four things on earth are among the smallest,But they are instinctively wise:*+
25 The ants are not strong creatures,*Yet they prepare their food in the summer.+
26 The rock badgers*+ are not mighty creatures,*Yet they make their house in the crags.+
27 The locusts+ have no king,Yet they all go forward in formation.*+
28 The gecko lizard+ clings with its feet,And it goes into the palace of a king.
29 There are three things that have an impressive stride,Four that are impressive as they move:
30 The lion, the mightiest among beasts,Which does not retreat from anyone;+
31 The greyhound; the male goat;And a king whose army is with him.
32 If you have foolishly exalted yourself+Or if you have schemed to do so,Put your hand over your mouth.+
33 For as the churning of milk produces butterAnd the squeezing of the nose produces blood,So the stirring up of anger produces quarrels.+
